


Not Your Fault

by Not_A_Valid_Opinion



Category: Scorpion (TV 2014)
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Happy and Toby friendship, Rape Aftermath, Rape/Non-con Elements, not explicit, you can't see anything I promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-29
Updated: 2016-03-29
Packaged: 2018-05-29 19:33:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6390358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Not_A_Valid_Opinion/pseuds/Not_A_Valid_Opinion
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Toby reacts... oddly, to say the least, when Walter pulls up a picture of their main suspect for the case the team is working on. Happy notices.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not Your Fault

**Author's Note:**

> Toby is smol and needs to be protected. Happy will fight u if you hurt him don't mess with happy I love her I love them I love everything. Naturally, here is a fic showing my baby hurting to show you how much I like my baby.

The team had just received Intel on their next mission. Marcus Kallriden was the man that they were told to look into, because he had apparently hacked into multiple different security systems of different, highly successful businesses, and stolen their most expensive items, all antiques and all with a special history.

It was the team's job to figure out how he did it and how to catch the guy. When Walter put Marcus's face and criminal record on the screen for the whole team to see, Toby's reaction was… interesting.

Happy- no, the whole team- noticed Toby's eyes widen at the sight of the suspect, and he took as step back as though he was balancing himself out, like he was going to fall. When he stepped back, he did it quickly and subconsciously, like he needed to get away from the man on the screen as quickly as possible.

And for a slightly longer moment then Happy thought normal, Toby's eyes flashed with fear.

Then they cleared. He looked away from the screen, still looking slightly distraught, and his eyes met Walter's, who was staring at him curiously.

"You know this guy?" Walter asked, looking from his friend to the screen and then back to his friend.

It took Toby a moment for his face to clear, the wrinkles on his face fading to be replaced with realization, as though he just remembered that people were around him.

"Uh, no. Well, yes, but no," he got out, crossing his arms.

Happy narrowed her eyes. He was in a mental defence stance, the same one he always pulled when people tried to pry into his personal life. Happy did the same thing, so it was easy to spot. She had only seen Toby do it a selected few times, since the man was normally very open about his life, and most were about his childhood.

Toby certainly did bounce around as a child. Toby had told her his mother was bipolar, and his dad was a gambler like him, only he was more of a hustler. He had become a shrink to help out with money problems, and he never made it past shrink, due to financial issues and, from what Happy had gathered, a lack of hope. Toby had gambled his way through a huge part of his life, only stopping when Walter came into the picture.

Happy could empathize.

Her dad left her at a young age and her mother was dead; she was stuck in foster care for all of her childhood. It was never a nice place, and when she was being considered for adoption, she always scared them off. But at the very least (for the most part, anyway. She ran away a lot) she had a roof over her head, people she could talk to (note: she didn't, but it was always nice to have the option), and meals that weren't from the back of a dumpster.

"Could you... Elaborate?" Walter asked, hands on his hips and shifting his feet position so he was leaning forwards a bit more. If she was Toby, she would have noticed that the shift was due to his confusion, his hands on his hips meant that he wanted an actual answer and portrayed annoyance, and the leaning forward was a nod to a curiosity that Walter clearly had, based on how Toby had reacted.

Toby, however, did seem to notice this, and he changed his expression to his resting face. "Uh, well, this guy is... Well, I don't actually really know anything about him, besides his name which you've... Already told us... And that he was a pit boss in one of the bars I went to a couple of times to gamble. He had a whole unofficial security team, and he was an important guy in the gambling life. Y' know, like a big shot."

Walter stared at him a moment before turning back to the screen. "What bar?" He asked, and Toby paused, but Happy knew that he wasn't trying recall the name.

"Uh, Stay A While. It's in Coney Island, but I guess if he's here then he's moved out from that place. He probably made it even bigger, from the looks of it."

Walter considered Toby, thinking. "How do you know him?"

Toby sighed, like he knew the question was coming and didn't want to answer it. "Uh, we may have gambled together, one or twice. Long time ago." He said curtly.

"How long ago?" Paige asked.

"Why's it matter?"

"Well, maybe we can find out how long he's been here for based on how long ago he was in Coney," She suggested. Toby shook his head.

"No, it was a long time ago. Even with the exact time and date, it won't help us find this guy. Right Sylvester?" Toby said, turning towards the big guy, who nodded.

"Ya, he's got a point. Statistically, it won't make a difference, judging on how long ago Toby made it out to be and how far away Marcus is from it," Said Sylvester.

"Ya, see? Toby knows. Now, if this guy's goal was…" Toby started plotting, him and his team putting ideas on how to find this guy. They all contributed to the conversation, especially Toby.

_Like he's trying to distract himself,_  thought Happy. Honestly, everyone has shit they hide. They all have done things they want to forget, and they've all had things done to them they want to erase. Whatever happened with Toby and this guy, it wasn't pretty, and Toby didn't want to relive it. Happy understood, she did, but for whatever reason, she wanted to know what happened. She wanted to fix it, if only slightly.

Now, she was good at fixing things. She could fix cars, trucks, machines, and probably planes if anyone were to let her near one for her to try. Human relationships and mental wellness, though, were a whole other ball game. She didn't like sports. She did, however, like Toby, and if it came to it, she would take up a base.

* * *

 

The team had found out where Marcus would be and when, and were going to check it out to make sure they were right and that there wasn't anything they missed. Of course, they had found an excuse to keep Cabe out of the loop, but at this point it was more a habit to do so than anything. They spent a whole day planning to make sure nothing went wrong, and were going the next day in the afternoon.

Walter and Paige were going into the building; they were going to scope out the perimeter, see if they were correct about him being there. Happy, Toby and Sylvester were in the van, listening in and guiding them through the building, keeping them out of view and all of that jazz. It was all a bit been-there-done-that, but hell, at least they were going to get paid.

"Walter, you're going to have to take a 90 degree turn once you get twelve meters up, okay?" Sylvester said into the mike. He was sitting in the driver's seat, with Toby and Happy in the back.

"Copy that," Walter breathed out, his voice slightly hushed.

Toby watched the heat signatures on his screen and the camera angles on another, making sure nobody was coming his way.

"Uh, rain check on that, wait 43 seconds, buddy, there's people exiting there. Security guards. Three, dressed casually but walking tense and briskly, their eyes moving in every direction like they're checking for threats. You want to avoid them," he said, and the two of them stopped walking and casually leaned against a wall, talking about casual banter that still fit in with the rest of the people.

They weren't in a party, per say, more an illegal auction of kinds. The building looked like a mechanics shop of sorts, and they needed to find where the items were being held.

The men finished exiting the hall, and once deemed safe, Paige and Walter were on the move again.

"Alright, you guys are coming up to a door at the end of the hall, and if I'm right-"

"You are," Walter said curtly, cutting Happy off, "This is the door you talked about."

"You positive? The specialized wrench I made is amazing, but it'll only work once. It should be the right door, but make sure."

A pause.

"Ya, it's got the silver lining with the burnt looking keyhole in it. This is the door," Walter said.

Happy nodded to herself, looking at something on the computer. She then instructed Walter on how to use it, making sure he did it properly so no one was alarmed.

He did, and soon he and Paige were through the room, announced by Paige saying, "We're in," like she was in some kind of a James Bond movie, which made Walter smile faintly next to her (which he would deny) and Toby smile inside of the van (which he wouldn't).

Walter and Paige walked around the room, scouring for the bidding items. Quickly, they found them. There were an assortment of miscellaneous objects scattering the corner of the room, all looking very rare and expensive.

"Wow, that's… very illegal," Said Paige, awed.

"You guys see what we need?" Sylvester asked, and Paige replied.

"Oh, ya. This is definitely what we were-"

"Four males, one of them Marcus, all heading your way, you guys have got to get out of there," Happy said urgently, and Sylvester looked up for a moment before his head was put back in a normal position.

"You've got 35 seconds before they're on you," He informed them, counting quietly out loud.

"There's a door on your 7 o'clock, behind the silver proof box. I can't see if it's a small room or a closet, the readings are a bit off with the heat signatures, but the other doors have people in them," Toby instructed, and Walter grabbed Paige's hand, zooming the two of them off into the direction of the door.

Walter pulled on the door handle, finding out that it's locked. Happy quickly told Paige to take her bobby pin out of her hair and instructed Walter on how to pick the lock, which was accompanied with Sylvester saying "Twenty-two seconds," before continuing to say numbers under his breath.

Toby was beyond worried, but he held his cool. He  _really_ didn't want his friends in Marcus' hands, but he  _really_ didn't want them to know why. He was sort of trapped.

Walter got the door open, and him and Paige piled in, shutting the door quietly behind them.

Everyone breathed a sigh in relief, and when the bad guys made it into the room, they left quickly, as though they were just checking in on the items and passing through into the next room.

"Okay, you guys can come out now," Sylvester told them, and just as Walter was reaching for the door handle, Paige said,

"God, it's freezing in here," Which made Walter pause.

"It  _is_ freezing. Happy?"

"Uh….. You guys might be in a storage freezer. That might be why the thermal readings are a bit wonky in there," she suggested quickly, her mind already playing out the possibilities of the 'freezing' room.

Walter and Paige looked around the room, but it was too dark to see anything. Walter found a light switch rather quickly and turned around, flicking it on, when Paige's gasp made Walter spin back around.

There were three bodies, frozen, with them in the walk-in freezer. Bits of frost hung onto their clothes and skin, their pupils white and their skin horrifyingly pale.

Walter and Paige both pressed themselves into the door instinctively, as far away as the bodies as possible. The two of them stared at the bodies, mouths agape, for a few long moments before Walter broke himself out of his trance.

"Uh, Toby, you might want to call Cabe now," He said, his voice small.

* * *

 

"Well," Cabe started, a frown etched permanently onto his face, "You guys have _got_ to start calling me before you do this sort of thing. Now, we've got the guys all locked up, thanks to you finding the missing antiques, but the bodies…. Well, they're being specially examined to find out how much jail time needs to be added to their already huge time. It's going on now, which is why I came, other than to pay you," He informed them.

They were all back in the garage. Walter and Paige had made it out of the building unseen and alright, though clearly shaken. By the time they got out, Cabe and the rest of the cops and Homeland Security made it to the scene. They arrested Marcus and his henchmen, and the team headed back to the garage. There was nothing more they could do, really.

The bodies were all young, skinny males. They were all covered with frozen bruises and cuts, some with broken limbs. It made Paige almost puke, and Toby felt horribly sick. He tried not to show it, obviously, and if Happy wasn't paying such close attention, she wouldn't have noticed the waves of guilt that randomly washed over his face whenever a specific thought that was unknown to Happy entered his mind.

Happy thought about approaching him about it, but really, it was none of her business. Toby was keeping it to himself for a reason, and if it was important or when he was ready, he would talk. However, since he hadn't, the only logical thing to think would be that it was irrelevant. That, or it was shameful, like a painful memory, and nobody would want to drag something like that back onto the surface. But still…

The team talked amongst themselves; Walter was dragged by Cabe over to the side, probably to lecture him about calling him first before jumping into action (again). Sylvester went back to his desk, continuing to eat a burger he had left there when Cabe entered. Paige went onto her phone, standing off to the side (they should probably get her a desk, but she seemed fine where she was). Happy went over to her workplace, looking over the tool she made for Walter to get through the specialized door. She had made it proficiently, but she was also in a rush, so she checked to see if any modifications could be made to suit both specific and general situations.

Happy pulled in her seat, examining her device, and then she decided to look up to see where Toby had gone. He was seated at his desk, his computer on in front of him, but he was looking at his arms, which were crossed on his desk. Well, he was more looking at his right elbow then anything. He looked like someone trying to keep his expression normal when it should be something completely else.

Again, Happy had that feeling of wanting to know what was wrong because even though he hid it pretty well, something was bothering Toby. It really wasn't any of her business, and it didn't affect how the team worked, but it bothered her knowing that there was a friend right in front of her dealing with a problem she couldn't help with. Especially since she knew if it was her, Toby would be doing his best to help in whatever way he could.

And so she put the tool down, got off of her butt, and walked over to him, pulling up a seat next to him. He noticed her coming up to him a little sluggishly, but he sat up anyway, clearing his throat and staring typing on his computer, making himself busy.

"And what brings you to my humble abode?" He greeted her, and Happy shrugged off any mean comments she could have used as a reply.

"What's going on with you?" She asked, and Toby played dumb.

"What do you mean?" He asked. His fingers never stopped typing.

Happy sighed, making sure her voice was low in case any team members were eavesdropping. "You've been acting weird this whole case. You look like you didn't sleep at all last night, and you've been going in and out of Toby land all day."

Toby stopped typing and faced her. "Look, nothing's going on with me. I'm fine, I just…" he trailed off, like he was trying to either find the right words or debating whether or not to tell her anything.

There was a long moment's silence before Happy sighed. She shouldn't really be frustrated by his lack of response, but she got frustrated easily. "You don't have to tell me anything, okay? But I'm here if you do. Something's clearly eating you, and I know you get over your issues by voicing your problems out loud sometimes, and that's cool. So if you wanna talk, I'll listen, but it's your choice," she explained. She didn't intend on saying that much, but she did, so whatever, too late now.

Toby stared at her, his eyes slightly wide. "My, my, did Happy just emote?" he exclaimed, slightly shocked, but he now had a small smile plastered on his face. He turned his head down and fixed his seating a little bit, and when his face was back up she saw the smile was no longer there. He leaned into his chair.

"I appreciate it, Happy. I do, but… Look, it was a long time ago, and the fact that it's still bothering me is a miracle," he said, thinking. His voice grew a bit smaller towards the end, like he regretted saying anything, but it started up again all the same. "Obviously, I used to be a bit of a problem gambler-"

He was cut off when Happy chuffed. He narrowed his eyes at her but continued. "And it got me into a lot of trouble, financially and… well, physically."

He looked down for a moment, his expression guarded. "And… Well, let's just say that one of the people I ended up gambling with was Marcus. He was a real big shot, so when I kept on beating him, he got mad."

There was another long pause, and Happy was about to say something when Toby cleared his throat. "So, now I've got some… bad memories. And when I saw him again, I kind of remembered them, and it just threw me in for a bit of a loop, I guess. But, I mean, the guy's finally locked up, so I'll be fine, okay? You don't have to worry about me."

He smiled at her once more before turning back to his computer and continuing to type. Happy watched, lost in thought, as his fingers scrambled across the keyboard expertly, never hesitating or pressing the back button. She nodded her head, deciding not to press the issue further and glad she got even just something small out of him.

"Okay," she said, more to herself than anything, and walked back to her workplace. As she was walking, Toby's eyes lifted, watching her for a short moment before they went back to his computer.

Cabe, who Happy had only just realized had left the room, had re-entered, shoving his phone back into his pocket. "Alright, well, there's really nothing pleasant or useful to share with you guys about the bodies, so I'm going to head out. Honestly, I'm surprised the mission went as well as it did, even if it didn't for them."

"Well, how did they die?" Sylvester asked, his head peeked up from behind his computer. Cabe paused before sighing. Toby narrowed his eyes.

"You don't want to tell us," he observed, and Cabe shook his head.

"No, Toby, I don't. It's unpleasant and not worth anybody getting upset over. I'm heading out; see you guys when I've got another case for you."

Paige muttered a pleasant "Goodbye" at him, but since she was the only one to say it, it was quiet. Everybody was curious.

Cabe made his way out of the garage, and after waiting a few inconspicuous moments, Happy left as well, following him out of the building. She hoped Toby wasn't paying attention. He probably wasn't considering how easily he'd been zoning out these past few hours and how focused he was on his computer (and elbow).

"Cabe," Happy called out when the door was securely shut behind her. Cabe had his car door open, and was just about to get in, but paused when he heard Happy. He shut his car door.

Happy walked over to him. "How… did those boys die?" She asked, and his expression was instantly filled with remorse.

"Happy…" He started, looking at his shoes before looking up at her. "You don't want to know."

_But I do,_ she thought to herself, but her facial features seemed to give away her thoughts, because Cabe sighed again.

"Why do you want to know?" He asked, his voice confused and tired. Happy continued to stare at him.

"Just tell me, I can handle it," she promised, and Cabe stared back at her. He nodded.

"Those boys died from separate reasons. The first boy, Mark Hans, was beaten to death with a blunt object they've determined was a metal baseball bat; the other two died of cold from being locked in the freezer. One of them, Chase Parker, had his broken ribs puncturing his lungs so violently that it... well, he didn't last long in the cold. The other guy, Tim Royland, was a bit older than the others, but he had a cracked skull and his arms were both broken. They all showed signs of sexual abuse, and they all were under 25," Cabe explained, opening up his car door at the end of his speech. "Look, I'm going, okay? Is there a reason for why you asked me this?"

Happy stared at him, shocked. Toby popped into her mind, with some of the selected words both he and Cabe told her swirling around in her mind. She closed her mouth. "No, I just… Bye, Cabe."

She started to walk away. She didn't walk back to the garage. She just walked.

Had…

No, it was none of her business. He clearly didn't want anybody…

Was he…

He doesn't want anybody,  _especially me_ , worrying about him…

Oh, God…

If she thought it was bad hearing it, imagine him  _living_ it…

No. No, she shouldn't jump to conclusions. Maybe that didn't happen to him, maybe he just got his ass kicked a little, maybe he didn't get…

Happy shook her head. Well, I can't ask him, but… what if it was true? She had to know; she couldn't just forget she heard that, could she? God, poor Toby…

He doesn't deserve this.

* * *

 

Happy thought it over; it was too soon to approach the topic with him, but she obviously had to ask him for the truth. Had he even told anyone?

She would ask him when they were alone; they were alone together a lot, since everybody seemed to think they made the greatest work pair for missions (which they did- Toby picked people out of the crowd, and Happy engaged. And, a little more often than liked by anybody, Toby would sacrifice himself so that Happy could finish a mission. It was very annoying).

Happy couldn't wait that long, though, since there was no guarantee they would be alone, and certainly not without coms in. So, she waited another two days before pulling Toby to the side. She did it casually, but also made sure they were talking outside. She knows that the team loved to eavesdrop.

She had told the team she needed to pick something up for a machine they were building, and asked Toby to come with her. Toby was shocked and delighted, instantly teasing her about falling in love with him and jumping on board, following her out of the building.

Toby told her they were taking his car, though, because Happy's driving scared him. Happy didn't blame him. They got in the car, and Toby asked where they were headed, putting in his keys. "We're not going anywhere," she said, and Toby looked at her, confused.

Happy had done plenty of internal debating. She had, and she was careful not to do it around Toby, because he always read people like a book, and that included her.

She knew this was none of her business, and she knew Toby would not, in any way, shape, or form, like this conversation. Besides, she could be wrong, and then she would look like a fool. But she knew she had to ask, because not only was it eating her from the inside out, but it was probably eating him to. Up close, she could really see the dark spots under his eyes, and she was reminded of how people always came to Toby for advice. Since he was a shrink, he always let and welcomed them to do so, but since he was  _the_  shrink, he had nobody for him to talk to.

Happy wanted to fix that, and she told herself this was the right thing to do. After all, Toby was always a bit more verbal about his problems than she was. He was the kind of person who talked about them to feel better, but he didn't have anybody to do that with.

"Um," Toby said staring at her, "Okay… so, what, are going to sit here and talk about our feelings?" He asked, looking like a mixture of confused, worried, and uncomfortable. "Are you okay?" He asked, trying to determine what was going on still.

God, Happy was bad at this. She clenched her fists, staring out through his car window. His car smelled oddly fruity, but then, Toby did have a citrus air freshener hanging from his rear-view mirror.

"Are _you?"_ Happy asked, trying to figure out how to go about this. "Look," She started, trying to find her wording and choosing carefully, "the last case we were on affected you… Personally."

Toby's face changed to realization and something else she couldn't place before going back to confusion. "Ya, but… I'm fine, Happy, you don't have to worry about-"

"Yes, I do," She said, her voice stronger than she thought it would be with how nervous she was. Toby blinked up at her, pushing his head back a bit. Happy looked at her hands for a moment before staring him in the eyes and continuing.

"Toby, you look exhausted," She told him, trying to covey her point in only so many words. Toby looked away.

"Happy, I'm fine, okay? Look, you don't have to shrink the shrink, I can handle myself."

"Yes, I do, because nobody else will. Toby, Cabe told me what happened to those bodies," she told him, trying keep her voice low. As stupid as it may sound, she didn't want to startle him.

Toby looked away instantly, and he hunched his back over a bit. "Happy," he said, his voice low, like a warning. Happy pushed on.

"Toby, they were beaten and raped. They were shoved in a freezer, and they were murdered. I need to know if any of this…" She stopped, thinking and hating herself a little bit, "sounds familiar to you."

Toby did not look at her. "Toby," she called, but there was no response. Quiet engulfed the car, and Happy held her breath for most of it. She needed to push Toby, but she knew she had no right to be doing this. It was so wrong of her, so inappropriate for her to even think of asking-

"Some of it," Toby said quietly, still not looking at her. Happy instantly forgot her inner self-pity.

"Did he…" Happy started, but this time Toby cut her off.

"Look, Happy, I get what you're trying to do, but it was a long time ago, it really was, and it's irrelevant now, so why does it matter what happened?" He exclaimed, now staring at her, but his eyes held no anger. Just worry and guilt. Was he worried about what she would think of him?

Happy put her hand on his shoulder, and found that he was tense. He started at her hand before looking back to her.

"I want to help. You haven't been sleeping or eating nearly as much as you did before you saw this guy, don't deny it. I know it’s still bothering you," she insisted, hoping Toby would just talk to her. Happy was really bad at this kind of stuff, but for Toby, she'd give it a shot.

Toby stared at her. He still looked confused. What was he so confused about? Was it that shocking that Happy wanted to help him?

"Okay," He said, slowly. His voice sounded uncertain, like he still didn't think he could share this information, but when he said "okay" a second time, Happy knew he was convincing himself. She smiled.

"It… It really was a long time ago, it’s stupid that this… bothers me still. He… well, I already told you that we gambled, and I beat him, and he got mad and… Ya. Ya, he uh, he raped me, if that's what you were getting at," he told her, and silence filled the car once more. Happy opened her mouth to say something, an apology maybe, but Toby stopped her. "When Cabe told us how bad of a condition those bodies were in, and when I found out how young they all were, around my age when it- it happened to me, I knew it had happened to them to. It… probably happened to plenty more people before them, maybe before me. I don't know, but… It's my fault."

He took in a shuddering breath, and Happy stared at him in shock. "Toby, this is not your fault. At all."

Toby shook his head. "But it is, Hap. If I hadn't been such a baby, and I had told someone what had happened… Maybe it wouldn't have happened to anybody else. I don't know, but… I didn't do anything. I just tried to pretend it didn't happen, and I didn't go to that bar again, and I just…" He stopped, looking like he was going to cry but was holding it in, "I just kept gambling, and pretending that it never happened, but I never forgot it happened, and that case just… Just brought it all back, I guess. I should have done something."

He shook his head. "It's stupid. I'm sorry, you shouldn't have had to get dragged into this," He told her, and wiped his eyes. Happy stared at him, not with pity, but with anger. She was so mad at Markus for doing that to him. She could kill him. And somehow, Toby thought what happened to him was his fault? Hell no.

"Toby," She said, keeping her voice as soothing as she could muster at the time, "This isn't your fault. What happened to you or to those other boys was not your fault. You couldn't have stopped this. If you told the police, the odds of him having gone to jail are very small, and so are the odds of him staying in jail long enough to ensure nobody else got harmed by him. It's fucked up, yes, but it is not your fault. You couldn't have stopped this, Toby, but you did help put a stop to it. He's gone now, for good, you're safe, and you have someone to talk to if you need to, okay?"

Toby looked down again, hiding his face. "Why are you doing this for me?"

Happy leaned over and pulled him into a hug. He didn't hug back, just kept his head down and his arms to his side and he was pulled into a rare Happy hug. "Because you'd do if for me, and because you're my friend, maybe more. I care about you too, you big doofus."

Toby smiled against her, leaning his head into her shoulder.

They would be okay.

 


End file.
